Second baseman Dustin Pedroia was held out of Wednesday's lineup at Oakland with a right thumb injury. He had jammed it earlier in the series while diving for a ball, but as usual, Pedroia tried to downplay its impact.

"I have a pretty high pain tolerance, but I don't know,'' he told media. in Oakland.

Pedroia said the injury is in a different part of the thumb from the injury that kept him out of the lineup more than a month ago, and seemed to dog him after his return.

The Red Sox hope a day off Wednesday, and the team's scheduled day off Thursday, will allow Pedroia to be ready for the four-game series against the Yankees starting Friday at Fenway Park.

After that comes the four-day All-Star break. The persistent problems with Pedroia's right thumb is still cause for concern, especially with Will Middlebrooks hobbled by a hamstring injury.

Nick Punto was in the starting lineup at Oakland Wednesday. The third baseman was Mauro Gomez, a career minor leaguer who was called up briefly earlier this year.

He was recalled again Tuesday when Daisuke Matsuzaka went on the disabled list. Gomez has been a first baseman, though he played third base from 2004-09 in the minors, when his propensity for errors led to a shift to first.